


In All Its Moods I See Myself

by fragilespark



Category: The Little Mermaid (1989)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-14
Updated: 2017-08-14
Packaged: 2018-12-15 09:37:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11803371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fragilespark/pseuds/fragilespark
Summary: Eric loves the sea, and the gift it has given is not his to keep. He must cherish every moment with her.





	In All Its Moods I See Myself

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jungle_ride](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jungle_ride/gifts).



The sea caressed the shores of Eric's kingdom. It had often taken his breath away, although never as dramatically as in the recent storm that claimed his favourite ship. He didn't remember much of the drowning part, only the vision of a woman and the lovely song that still rang in his head.

Yet somehow it was _this_ girl, the young woman with the long red hair, excitedly stumbling through her stay at the palace, who stole the air from his lungs in the most blissful way. When she turned her gaze on him, her eyes seemed to be calling with the words she could not say. He could only imagine; "This is so interesting! Over here, Eric! Show me this. I want to learn. I want you to understand."

The sun rose, blazing the palace with its warmth as Eric realised he was looking forward to spending as much of the day with her as he could. Max bounded at his feet excitedly. "Sorry, Max. We're going on a tour. Just me and our new guest." He ruffled the mutt's shaggy hair. Eric had never seen him so affectionate with a stranger as he was with the new mystery girl, and that was a comfort to him. Although Eric tried to spend time among his people as much as possible, there were still those who thought any girl he paid attention to was going to be his next bride. Taking one out in the gig he normally rode alone might raise some eyebrows, but Eric didn't care about that. Max reminded him to stay grounded and simply enjoy being in the moment.

She arrived in a blue dress, and Eric liked it even better than the gown she had worn at dinner. That had been so stunning he'd forgotten to do anything but stare at her all evening. This was at least travel friendly. He wanted to find out which parts of the kingdom she liked, but first he had a lot to show. After riding through the countryside Eric looped them back around and headed for the town. They stopped at the market first. "Are you getting hungry?"

She nodded, and looked around. The farmers were selling ingredients, and craftspeople their wares, and there were a few hot food stalls filling the air with tempting aromas.

"The fish is as good as the freshest anywhere." Eric stopped himself before he started bragging like a salesman.

Her eyes widened and she shook her head.

"No fish? Or... you don't eat meat?" He'd have to tell Chef Louis about that right away, just to be safe. "Okay, how about..." Eric moved to the next stall. "Vegetable fritters? They're wonderful, I promise." He ordered a cone of them to share and led her away from the bustle to sit on a short wall. The stone was warm and made him content to just bask for a while instead of rushing to show her the next sight. He looked at his date and she had her eyes closed, also enjoying the sunlight. Her legs swung lightly, heels tapping against the brick as if her body moved to a melody she carried inside. He waited until she opened her eyes again before tilting the cone to her so she could take the first one. "Careful, they're hot. Use this."

She took the paper napkin and picked one up with it, tentatively taking a bite. Her eyebrows went up.

"Good, right?"

She nodded and ate the rest as quickly as the heat would allow. Eric laughed. He knew that feeling. Louis would disapprove but he'd have to get him to make some of the sweet apple dough balls Eric had burned his tongue on many a time. Eric finally took a fritter when she was on her second, and it really was as delicious as he remembered. They sat and watched the world go by as they polished off the whole portion between them, and since the greasy napkin was no use to them they ended up wiping their lips on the back of their hands. Eric stood so he could dispose of the rubbish and then grinned at her. She grinned back.

"Let's walk it off. They're playing some music later so we'll catch that before we go."

Eric forgot how quickly time could pass. He showed her the prettiest buildings in the town and the most interesting places, and started making plans for trips to the other towns nearby if she ended up staying longer. There was so much they could do; there were plays, fairs, and gardens, and even in the palace itself there were galleries and sculptures. His mind turned towards the sea, as it always did. He would love to take her sailing, to know what she thought of it, whether she was energised being around the water or if she'd be afraid of it.

Her hand came to rest on his arm just as he noticed the strains of music coming from the central square. She pointed in its direction, eager to go, and Eric encouraged her to lead the way. Some of the townsfolk were already dancing, and Eric noticed she was bouncing on her heels as she watched.

"Would you... like to dance?" Eric asked, heat rising to his face. He didn't understand why he was getting so flustered, since he'd been taught how to dance with pretty ladies all his life. He held out his hand to her and she took it immediately, her expression open and warm. This was no time for the formal court dances he'd been trained on, however, and he led her in a simple turn. She followed no step sequence, only his own movement to that of the music, and they managed to move in time with only a few stumbles. Eric had to take care; she had not seemed injured from the shipwreck that had brought her here, but if she was still a bit wobbly he didn't want to tire her out.

"What do you want to do now?" Eric asked. "Shall we go back?"

She nodded, and when they retrieved their horse, turned to take another look at the town behind her. Eric wanted so badly for her to feel welcome, but knew it wasn't her home. Still, until she had the means to go back, until news of a family searching for her came forth, he would offer her a room in his palace for as long as she needed. His heart broke to think that perhaps she had lost it all and could not remember, and that her cheerful disposition would shatter if she learned the truth. However, it was only speculation, and Eric had to clear his head of it. He just had to focus on her in the moment, and pay attention to what she tried to communicate. Nothing else.

 

Eric excused himself before dinner to catch up with the day's correspondence and also spend some time with Max, who had been walked by one of the servants. Eric's head was still full of how wonderful the tour had been with his lovely date.

Dinner was relatively early, as was usual for days with any kind of outing beyond the palace. Eric tried to navigate the right way to have a conversation with a partner who couldn't reply verbally; if he talked too much with Grimsby he would exclude her, and if he talked nervously at her just to fill the silence it was too one-sided. He must have got it right since she didn't seem unhappy even after the dessert plates were taken away.

They walked out onto the terrace and looked out onto the calm sea. Sunset in her red hair made it shine brighter, each strand glittering as if she wore a crown of golden light.

He didn't want the day to end.

It was a warm evening, and the fireflies would be out. There was that lagoon where they tended to cluster at this time of year. Of course it would be nature that put to shame anything he could show off from his kingdom, and Eric was perfectly okay with that.

"Would you like to go on a boat ride? I know it's late, but...."

She nodded, smiling at him.

Eric's chest felt warm. "Okay then. I'll let Grim know we're going out again."

 

Eric hadn't been on the water since the drama of the last few days. He'd brought her out to see how beautiful this place was, but instead she kept her attention on him, and that made his heart beat faster. She was no longer saying, "I want to know about this." It seemed to be, "I want to know about _you_."

There was so much he wanted to know about her too. Like her name. A whisper on the wind suggested a name to him. "Ariel."

She grabbed his hand and nodded.

That was it? Another part of her identity crystallised for him. Ariel. What a pretty name. Her hand stayed in his, and Eric was in no hurry to let go. What a fool he was; he wanted her to be enchanted by his kingdom, but here he was falling under its romantic spell. Perhaps this was what he had been looking for, someone to share it with. She so openly _liked_ him, and he liked her. It seemed to soon for those thoughts, and yet he was leaning forward as she was, the gentle breeze in the reeds surrounding them. A kiss...

A jolt under the rowboat tipped them to one side and it was too late to stop it, their weight doing the rest and plunging them straight into the water. Fortunately it was a shallow pool, and Eric helped Ariel to her feet. She didn't seem hurt, but Eric was kicking himself nonetheless. What an end to a date. Sopping wet and no other option but to walk back with their clothes drenched. "Sorry. I should have noticed the wind was getting up."

Perhaps it was for the best. After all, it had only been a day, two at most. And perhaps his dream girl was still out there. _Ariel_ \- oh, how that name seemed to make itself comfortable in his heart - she would not stay forever. Even as he tried to tell himself he had just been caught up in the moment, he looked out at the gathering bluster on the sea and pleaded.

_Please don't take her away again._


End file.
